THE LETTER

Ruth went to her mail box and there was only one letter. She picked it up and looked at it before opening, but then she looked at the envelope again. There was no stamp, no postmark, only her name and address.

She read the letter:

Dear Ruth,

I'm going to be in your neighborhood Saturday afternoon and I'd like to stop by for a visit.

Love Always,
Jesus

Her hands were shaking as she placed the letter on the table. "Why would the Lord want to visit me? I'm nobody special. I don't have anything to offer." With that thought, Ruth remembered her empty kitchen cabinets.

Oh my goodness, I really don't have anything to offer. I'll have to run down to the store and buy something for dinner." She reached for her purse and counted out its contents. Five dollars and forty cents.

"Well, I can get some bread and cold cuts, at least." She threw on her coat and hurried out the door. A loaf of french bread, a half-pound of sliced turkey, and a carton of milk...leaving Ruth with grand total of twelve cents to last her until Monday. Nonetheless, she felt good as she headed home, her meager offerings tucked under her arm.

"Hey lady, can you help us, lady?" Ruth had been so absorbed in her dinner plans, she hadn't even noticed two figures huddled in the alleyway. A man and a woman, both of them dressed in little more than rags.

"Look lady, I ain't got a job, ya know, and my wife and I have been living out here on the street, and, well, now it's getting cold and we're getting kinda hungry and, well, if you could help us, lady, we'd really appreciate it."

Ruth looked at them both. They were dirty, they smelled bad and, frankly, she was certain that they could get some kind of work if they really wanted to.

"Sir, I'd like to help you, but I'm a poor woman myself. All I have is a few cold cuts and some bread, and I'm having an important guest for dinner tonight and I was planning on serving that to Him."

"Yeah, well, okay lady, I understand. Thanks anyway." The man put his arm around the woman's shoulders, turned and headed back into the alley. As she watched them leave, Ruth felt a familiar twinge in her heart.

"Sir, wait!" The couple stopped and turned as she ran down the alley after them. "Look, why don't you take this food. I'll figure out something else to serve my guest." She handed the man her grocery bag.

"Thank you lady. Thank you very much!"

"Yes, thank you!" It was the man's wife, and Ruth could see now that she was shivering. "You know, I've got another coat at home. Here, why don't you take this one." Ruth unbuttoned her jacket and slipped it over the woman's shoulders.

Then smiling, she turned and walked back to the street...without her coat and with nothing to serve her guest. "Thank you lady! Thank you very much!"

Ruth was chilled by the time she reached her front door, and worried too. The Lord was coming to visit and she didn't have anything to offer Him. She fumbled through her purse for the door key. But as she did, she noticed another envelope in her mailbox.

"That's odd. The mailman doesn't usually come twice in one day." She took the envelope out of the box and opened it.

Dear Ruth,

It was so good to see you again. Thank you for the lovely meal And thank you, too, for the beautiful coat.

Love Always,
Jesus

The air was still cold, but even without her coat, Ruth no longer noticed.

A lot of good...

Coming out of church,Mrs Smith asked her husband,"Do you think that Johnson girl is tinting her hair?""

I didn't even see her,"admitted Mr.Smith."

And that dress Mrs.Davis was wearing,"continued Mrs. Smith,"Really, don't tell me you think that's the proper outfit for a mother of two

." "I'm afraid I didn't notice that either,"said Mr.Smith.

'Oh for heaven's sake, "snapped Mrs.Smith.'A lot of good it does you to go to church."
'

New Found Respect.....

There were these three guys talking.Two of them were talking about the amount of control they have over their wives,while the third guy remains quiet.

After a while one of the first two turns to the third and says,"Well what about you,what sort of control do you have over your wife?"

The third fellow puffs out his chest and says,"Well I'll tell you.Just the other night my wife came to me crawling on her hands and knees."

The first two guys were amazed! Their eyes are wide and they have a newfound respect for this guy."Wow!What happened then?"they asked.

The third guy sighed and replied,"She said,'get out from under that bed and fight like a man!"

THANK YOU PAPPY! HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND! :)

Proper Attire.....

Proper attire is required in the cafeteria at the University of Victoria.To enforce the rule,the management posted this notice:"Shoes are required to eat in this cafeteria."

Next to it, a student added,"Socks can eat wherever they want."

Lawyer...

When my mother was called for jury duty,she felt confident of her ability to answer the questions asked of prospective jurors.As a young attorney,I filled her in on what to expect.Asked about the occupations of family members,Mom answered, my son is a lawyer."As a follow up she was asked if she had ever used the services of an attorney. "Only to mow my lawn,"

Little Johnny on the Playground...

Finding one of her students making faces at others on the playground,Ms.Smith stopped to gently reprove the child."Little Johnny," she said, smiling sweetly."when I was a child, I was told if I made ugly faces I would stay like that." "Well," Little Johnny said, looking up, "You can't say you weren't warned."

Prayers....

A little girl,dressedf in her Sunday best,was running as fast as she could trying not to be late for Bible class.

As she ran she prayed,
"Dear Lord,please don't let me be late!Please Lord don't let me be late!

As she was rumnning and praying,she tripped on a curb and fell,getting her clothes dirty and tearing her dress.
She got up,brushed herself off and started running again.

As she ran,she once again started to pray
"Dear Lord,please don't let me be late! But don't shove me either."

Oh PAPPY, hope my post don't show up twice, having some trouble with this reply....JIM CHECKIN' IN brought up the teary mist to both eyes...how poignant!

THEN LOL re: PRAY FOR ME, PRAY FOR ME
* * *
Thank you so for so faithfully leaving us these reads every day...I appreciate them very much!

Jim Checking In:

A minister passing through his church in the middle of the day,decided to pause by the altar and see who came to pray.Just then the back door opened,a man came down the aisle.The minister frowned as he saw the man hadn't shaved in a while. His shirt was kind of shabby and his coat was worn and frayed.The man knelt,bowed his head, then rose and walked away.In the days that followed,each noontime came this chap, each time he knelt just for a moment,a lunch pail in his lap. Well, the minister's suspicions grew,with robbery a main fear, he decided to stop the man and ask him,"Whatcha' doin' here?'

The old man,he worked down the road.Lunch was half an hour.Lunch-time was his prayer time,for finding strength and power."I stay only moments,see 'cause the factory is so far away;As I kneel here talkin' to the Lord,this is kinda'what I say:This is Jim checkin in "I just came againto tell you Lord how happy I have been since we found each other's friendship and you took away my sin.I don't know much of how to pray but I think of You every day so Jesus this is Jim checkin' in"

The minister,feeling foolish,told Jim that was fine.He told the man he was welcome to come and pray just any time.Time to go, Jim smiled,said "Thanks".He hurried to the door The minister knelt at the altar,he'd never done it before.His cold heart melted,warmed with love,met with Jesus there.As the tears flowed,in his heart he repeated old Jim's prayer: I just came to tell you Lord how happy I have been since we found each other's friendship and You took away my sin,I don't know much of how to pray but I think of You every day,so Jesus this is me checkin' in..

Past noon one day, the minister noticed that old Jim hadn't come.As more days passed without Jim,he began to worry some.At the factory,he asked about him,learning he was ill.The hospital staff was worried,but he'd given them a thrill.The week that Jim was with them brought changes to the ward.His smiles,a joy contagious.Changed people, his reward.The head nurse couldn't understand why Jim was so glad, when no flowers,calls, or cards came,not a visitor he had.. The minister stayed by his bed,he voiced the nurse's concern :No friends came to show they cared. He had nowhere to turn.Looking surprised,old Jim spoke up and said with a winsome smile:"The nurse is wrong,she couldn't know,that all the while everyday at noon He's here,a dear friend of mine,you see.He sits right down,takes my hand, leans over and says to me:"I just came again to tell you Jim, how happy I have been since we found this friendship and I took away your sin.I always love to hear you pray,I think about you every day.And so Jim this is Jesus checkin' in"

Acting Up In Church........

One Sunday in a Midwest city,a young child was "acting up" during the morning worship hour.
The parents did their best to maintain some sense of order in the pew but were losing the battle.

Finally the father picked the little fellow up and walked sternly up the aisle on his way out.

Just before reaching the safety of the foyer,the little one called loudly to the congregation,

Pray for me! Pray for me!

Mean Old Woman............

An old man and woman were married for years,even though they hated each other,When they had a confrontation,screaming and yelling could be heard deep
into the night.

The old man would shout "When I die,I will dig my way up and out of the grave and come back to haunt you for the rest of your life!"

Neighbors feared him because of the many strange occurrences that took place in their neighborhood.

The old man liked the fact he was feared.To everyone's relief he died of a heart attack when he was 68.

His wife had a closed casket at the wake.After the burial,she went straight home and began to party as if there was no tomorrow.

Her neighbors,concerned for her safety,asked "Aren't you afraid that he might dig his way up and out of the grave and come back and haunt you for the rest of you life?"

The wife put down her drink and said,'Let the old man dig.I had him buried upside down."

Thank you PAPPY.....HAPPY WEEKEND! :)

Three Lttle Pigs.........

My friend likes to read his two young sons fairy tales at night.Having a deep-rooted sense of humor,he often ad-libs parts of stories for fun.

One day his youngest son was sitting in his first grade class as the teacher was reading the story of the Three Little Pigs.She came to the part of the story where the first pig was trying to acquire building materials for his home.She said,....'And so the pig went up to the man with a wheelbarrow full of straw and said "Pardon me sir,but might I have some of that straw to build my house with?"

Then the teacher asked the class,"And what do you think the man said?"

My friend's son raised his hand and said,"I know! I know! He said, Holy smokes! A talking pig!"

The teacher was unable to teach for the next ten minutes.

HI PAPPY! :)

Unwanted Visitor.......

A man down on his luck,went into a church which catered to the "uppity".Spotting the man's dirty clothes a deacon worried about the church's image went to the man and asked him if he needed help. the man said,"I was praying and the Lord told me to come to this church

The deacon suggested that the man go pray some more and possibly he might get a different answer.The next Sunday the man returned. The deacon asked "Did you get a different answer?"

The man replied,"Yes I did.I told the Lord that they don't want me in that church and the Lord said," Don't you worry about it ,son .I've been trying to get into that church for years and haven't made it yet."

Imperfection...............

I once heard the story of a pastor who was preaching the truth that no one is perfect,To prove his point he asked for anyone who was perfect to stand up.

One man stood up in the middle of the congregation.

The pastor asked,"Do you really think you are perfect?"

The man replied,"Oh no!I'm not perfect.I'm standing up on behalf of my wife's first husband."

Whooooo weeee THANK YOU PAPPY!.....HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEK! :)

Tailgating ..........

An honest man was being tailgated by a stressed-out woman on a busy boulevard.Suddenly the light turned yellow,just in front of him.

He did the right thing,stopping at the crosswalk,even though he could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the intersection.

The tailgating woman hit the roof,and the horn, screaming in frustration as she missed her chance to get through the intersection.As she was still in mid-rant,she heard a tap on her and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer.The officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up.

He took her to the police station where she was searched, finger printed,photographed,and placed in a holding cell.

After a couple of hours,a policeman approached the cell and opened the door.She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects.

He said"I'm very sorry for this mistake.You see when I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn,flipping off the guy in front of you and cussing a blue streak at him,I noticed the "Choose life" license plate holder, the "What Would Jesus Do" bumper sticker, the "Follow Me to Sunday School"bumper sticker, and the chrome- plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk.

Naturally,I assumed that you had stolen the car."

We can"t foresee...

We can't foresee the turning of the tide

When problems beset us and tears are cried.

Sometimes life deals from the bottom of the deck

Filling us with worry and leaving us a wreck.

The enemy seeks to devour and destroy,

Using deceptions to eliminate our joy.

While walking through the valley, our heads hung low,

The mountain top seems so high, our footsteps slow.

How many times have we traveled this road

To battle the frustrations of troubles bestowed ?

Yet when we come to our darkest hour

God demonstrates His infinite power.

It doesn't matter how bad things might seem,

He always comes through, our faith to redeem.

God will not fail us in our times of pain.

He'll never forsake us, by our side He'll remain.

So when we find ourselves at a total loss

Or when the valley seems too wide to cross,

Just remember you're in His love and care,

Look over your shoulder, He's always there!

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